Comic Potential
The season kicked off with Alan Ayckbourn’s hilarious Comic Potential. With the show directed by Chloe Faine, Panny Skrivanos played Adam, a young idealistic comedy writer, who falls in love with his lead actress, Jacie (Sarah Boyes), who in an unfortunate twist of fate, is a robot. Sporting a cast of hilarious characters, and staged as a cross between Pygmalion and Little Britain, Comic Potential was both a touching and funny start to our season.
Sarah Boyes gave a fantastic performance. The role involves a huge range of emotions, accents and physicality and she made it all look effortless. Having seen amateur dramatics before, I never expected such a great performance.Best “Am-Dram” I’ve been to in years, will definitely see more by Sedos.
Grand Hotel
Sedos moved seamlessly from futuristic Hollywood to pre-war Berlin, for a polished production of the musical Grand Hotel. This ambitious staging, only a year after the success of the Donmar Warehouse interpretation, was fantastically well received. Exploring the atmosphere of 1920's Berlin, with the optimism of prosperity starkly contrasted with the impending shadow of Nazism, Andrew Overin’s directorial debut was slick, beautiful and poignant.
I've always loved the show...Sedos do such a great job...I was really impressed at how slick it was...and that was the preview. The whole thing just flowed. I can't quite believe they are an amateur company... I don't think I've ever seen a musical at the Bridewell with such high production values. Isn't it about time this show had a West End revival?
Eurosedos 2007 - The Battle
As we entered the summer months it was time for the return of our hugely successful Eurosedos. Once again the cream of Eurovision was presented, with the winning acts from our 2006 show competing against some new entries from across Europe. An interactive voting system allowed the audience to decide which of the 19 Eurovision acts would be crowned kings and queens of Eurosedos! A lively and buoyant audience, fuelled by the traditional Eurovision atmosphere as well as a not inconsiderable amount of wine packed the Bridewell theatre and were left screaming for encores.
The Odd Couple (Female) and Mary Stuart
After the success of Sedos' 2005 Edinburgh tour, Sedos decided again to venture North of the border with two very different shows. James Franey and Laura Capaldi directed the Neil Simon classic The Odd Couple, with a female twist. Anne Marie Leigh was superb as the super slobby Olive who welcomes the uptight Florence (Sarah Beebe) into her New York home. Perfect for the Edinburgh fringe scene, it received excellent reviews. Along similar lines Dan Chasemore directed the rather less hilarious Mary Stuart.
Still buzzing from the recent Donmar revival, Bridget Cross played the titular Mary Stuart, the queen of Scots imprisoned by her regal cousin, Queen Elizabeth I (Chloe Faine). Playing directly after the odd couple, Mary Stuart was a moving and intense production with several standout performances from some Sedos regulars and newcomers alike.
Julius Caesar
Shakespeare took to the city again with Juliette Chrisman’s production of Julius Caesar. Moving the action from ancient Rome to contemporary Westminster, the classic tale of ambition, succession and betrayal was timely and poignant. Playing at a variety of locations across the city of London, including the Stock Exchange itself, Sedos was again able to bring the bard bang up to date.
Sweeney Todd
What better way to finish the season than with a Sondheim classic? Roger Harwood beat Tim Burton to the punch and directed a macabre version of Sweeney Todd. Starring Andy Blacksell as the eponymous demon barber, this was Sedos’ most ambitious project to date, as the Bridewell Theatre was transformed into Fleet Street itself in this dark, brooding production. The show sold out in record time, and received rave reviews. A triumph!
Compared with its big brother on Broadway, this production outshined its big-budgeted Big Apple sibling for a surprising number of reasons. Don't miss the dark side: "Sweeney Todd" lives and breathes one punk rock ripped organism one would not want to meet in a dark alleyway, though that's where it happens to shine.
